


Hope It Comes Soon

by unexpectedbeautifulfanfic



Category: Hanson (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Australia, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-17
Updated: 2018-02-17
Packaged: 2019-02-16 03:51:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,882
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13045908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unexpectedbeautifulfanfic/pseuds/unexpectedbeautifulfanfic
Summary: Audrey meets the love of her life, a guy named Taylor, when she was least expecting it.





	1. Prolouge

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Jiangyin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jiangyin/gifts).
  * Inspired by [The Basement Tapes](https://archiveofourown.org/works/76751) by [Jiangyin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jiangyin/pseuds/Jiangyin). 



> It is not necessary to read "The Basement Tapes" to understand this one, but it is highly recommended. I did borrow some dialogue from the original story. The original story is told from Taylor and Miki’s POV, but for this remix I chose to retell certain elements of this story through Audrey, Taylor’s girlfriend and later wife’s, POV. Also, this is my first remix, so be kind! Feedback is always appreciated. I tried my best to do justice to this incredible story. This remix as well as the original story are set in Australia, and I apologize in advance if some terminology is incorrect - I am American. Story title inspired by Hanson’s song “Hope It Comes Soon.” Thanks to Bethany for organizing the remix. It’s been a challenging and fun experience. Enjoy, and thanks for reading.

  
-  
Well I hope it comes now  
Well I hope it comes soon  
Well I think it’s about time  
I stopped waiting for **you**  
-

2009

“I just don’t know what I did wrong.”

I sighed and took a half-hearted sip of my beer. My friend Marie sat across next to me at the tavern. She smiled sadly, and patted my hand in reassurance.

“I’m just so sorry, Audrey. I know you really liked him. Just know that you didn’t do anything wrong. He’s an idiot, and he’ll regret this, I can promise you that. Trust me when I say you will meet the right guy someday. I know it. You’re beautiful and smart. You’re better off without him. And it’s his loss.”

I smiled at Marie. She was such a good friend, and always had the sweetest things to say about me. The slight cynic in me told myself she was biased, but the eternal optimist in me - perhaps the stronger side - wanted to believe her. But right now, it was hard to, considering I’d recently been dumped by my boyfriend.

I had been dating this guy named Ryan for the past year. We knew each other from college, but lost touch after we graduated and he’d moved to Sydney for a job. We’d always wanted to be more than friends, but were always with other people, and the timing was never right. About a year ago, he’d relocated to Wollongong, where I lived. We’d reconnected and been inseparable ever since. I was always careful with dating, and had to admit things had moved fast with Ryan, but I had gone along with it because I’d liked him so much. I’d fallen for him quickly. Everything had been going really well...until about a month ago.

But about a month ago things had really started to take a downturn. He’d started blowing me off, not returning my calls and acting distant. I had no idea what was going on. When I asked him, he denied anything was going on. Then one morning he dropped the bombshell: he had met someone else, a woman from his work, and he wanted to pursue a relationship with her. I was crushed. The only good thing about the whole situation was that at least he’d had the decency to break up with me before pursuing her. That’s what I told myself, anyway.

So here I was, a week after the breakup, freshly single, drowning my sorrows in a mug of beer at a little pub called Cooney’s Tavern with one of my oldest friends. I went to Cooney’s a lot, sometimes after work. I especially enjoyed their monthly open mic night.

“Thanks, Marie.” I said sadly. “I know you’re right, but it doesn’t feel like that now. I really liked him... a lot.”

“Well, you know what they always say...you meet the right person when you’re not looking. Remember how I met Greg?” she asked.

I nodded, remembering that day. Marie and I had been planning a girls night in. We’d went to the supermarket on a whim in our pajamas, with our hair in rollers, to get ice cream and wine. While in line, Marie had dropped the bottle of wine. It had shattered on the floor, much to our embarrassment. An attractive man in front of us in line had offered to help us clean up the spilled wine. He’d asked for Marie’s number, and well, the rest was history. The next week, he’d taken her on their first date and they’d been together ever since. That was two years ago. In fact, they were engaged to be married in the fall. I was to be one of her bridesmaids.

I smiled despite myself, remembering that night.

“That is true. Remember how embarrassed you were?” I laughed, an image of Marie blushing bright red in my head, her pretty face framed by giant pink rollers that matched her pink satin pajamas.

She nodded, taking a sip of her beer. “Oooh, yeah. Not my finest hour: hair in curlers and wearing pajamas, and here is this gorgeous guy asking for my number.” 

I chuckled again, in spite of myself.

We sat in comfortable silence for a bit, drinking our beers. 

After a while, she turned to me and smiled, her green eyes locking into my brown ones.

“You’ll find your Greg someday. I promise. Who knows, maybe it’ll even be here.” 

I wanted to believe her.


	2. Chapter 2

_A month later_

I cringed when I heard the sound my car made when I turned the ignition.

“That is so not good…” I muttered, and made a mental note to call the mechanic later today. But in the meantime, I needed to get to work. I knew my car had been having issues - it’d been in the shop twice this month already, but I couldn’t really afford a new car. I hoped it would last through the winter at least. 

I let the car sit for a moment, softly sputtering, before taking a deep breath and muttering a prayer, then shifted it into drive and proceeded to drive to work.

I made it about three blocks before it sputtered for a final time and died.

“Damn it, Audrey.” I muttered as I quickly looked behind me. Thankfully, there were no other cars in sight at the moment on the small side road I was on. I shifted the car into neutral and coasted it to the side of the road.

I quickly tried to start the car again with no luck. I sighed and checked my watch. I was scheduled to be at work in 15 minutes. I sighed as I unbuckled my seatbelt and reached into the backseat into my purse for my mobile.

I took it out and after fruitlessly trying to make a call, realized I was out of credit.

“Damn it!” I muttered again, my mother’s voice in my head, instructing me to always keep my phone with credit in case of an emergency.

Well, here I was in an emergency, and I wasn’t ashamed to admit my mother had been right.

I sat in my car and thought for a moment, trying to decide what to do. I looked around and saw a few houses. I weighed my options. I could get out of the car and knock on a door and ask to use the phone. Or I could walk to a nearby service station and use the pay phone. I decided on the later. 

Then, I suddenly remembered that Dad had signed me up for roadside assistance.

“Thank you Dad” I mumbled, taking my wallet out of my purse and locating the card with the toll-free number on it. I decided to go to the service station and use the payphone to call for roadside assistance.

I zipped my jacket up, put on my scarf and was pulling my gloves on when I looked up to see a man walking towards me.

“Thank the Lord,” I muttered, my desire to get to work on time overriding my healthy wariness of strangers. I hoped he had a working mobile phone I could use. I rolled the frosty window down, and flashed my best smile.

“Excuse me, do you have a phone I can borrow?”

I found myself face-to-face with an alarmingly attractive guy who looked strangely familiar, but I couldn’t place from where. His long blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail and he had a kind smile.

“Uh, yeah, of course.” he said, flashing me a tiny, cautious smile, and I could tell he was wary of strangers as I was.

For whatever reason, I felt immediately at ease. He rummaged through his pockets and found his phone, handing it to me.

“Thank you so much,” I replied, eternally grateful in that moment for the kindness of strangers. “Mine’s out of credit, and I need to call the NRMA…” I flipped it open and started dialling. “I won’t be long.”

“Take your time.”

The phone call had taken longer than I had hoped - they’d put me on hold, and once I got through, the questionnaire involved was surprisingly long. While on hold, I kept stealing glances at the guy, who stood there outside my car awkwardly. I mouthed “sorry” to him. He waved his hand in a gesture that said “No problem.”

I tried to think of where I knew the guy from, but couldn’t place it.

Finally, around fifteen minutes later, the call was complete and my roadside assistance truck was on its way to bail me out of this supremely embarrassing situation.

I flipped it closed, and handed his mobile back to him. “I know I said it already, but thank you. I really appreciate it.”

He smiled and pocketed his mobile. Then a look of recognition crossed his face. He snapped his fingers, clearly proud of himself.

“You were at the open mic last week!”

I realized then where I had seen him; at Cooney’s last week for their open mic night. He’d performed.

“I was wondering where I’d seen you before!” I said, laughing. “Taylor Hanson, right?”

He nodded. “Yeah, that’s me.”

“I’m Audrey Carmichael.” I opened the driver’s side door, and stepped out of the car onto the street. “It’s nice to see you again.”

“You too.” he replied, and it seemed genuine.

I got out of the car and walked around it, sitting on the bonnet. I studied him. He looked cold, but he wasn’t walking away, so that was something. Maybe he was even going to keep me company as I waited for my tow truck? If so, I admired how gentlemanly that was - there was no denying it was cold out, and I was sure he had someplace to be. I wondered why he’d want to wait here with me.

Not that that I was complaining. A guy that good-looking? Any girl stranded on the side of the road would be lucky to have for company.

“So what are you doing on Gipps Road?” I asked conversationally.

“I live on this street,” Taylor replied. “A few doors up that way, just past the nursery.” He pointed down the street, towards an apartment complex. “I just dropped my daughter off at school.”

I thought back on that night at Cooney’s, and remembered that he had mentioned during his set that he had a daughter. That had surprised me.

“Oh right,” I said. “I remember you mentioning you were a dad. How old is she?” I also remembered him mentioning he was only twenty-six.

“She’s six,” Taylor replied. “She’ll be seven in the middle of September.”

I quickly did the math in my head.

“You look a little young to have a six-year-old.” I said as casually as possible.

It may have been my imagination, but he seemed slightly pleased by my comment, like he’d taken it as a compliment, and not just an observation as I had intended. “Yeah, I know I am,” he replied after a moment. “I was nineteen when she was born. She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” he said matter-of-factly.

I nodded, unsure what to say to that. I didn’t have any kids, and it was hard for me to imagine what it must feel like to be a parent. 

After a moment I spoke up.

“I shouldn’t keep you. You’ve probably got work or something, so…I’ll be fine here by myself – this isn’t the first time this has happened. More like the sixth time this year.”

To my surprise, he shrugged. “I don’t think I’ll be missed much at work,” he said. “It gets pretty quiet during school terms, so I’m probably not needed today.”

He took his phone out. “Should probably make sure, though.”

I stood by awkwardly while he made a phone call, presumably to his work, telling them his car was out of commission and he wasn’t coming in today. I was impressed. I’d have to have a better excuse to get out of my job like that. Or maybe not. I decided I’d try the same excuse he had.

““Well, I’m free for the rest of the day. Where were you headed?” he said as he flipped his phone closed and pocketed it.

“Just to work – I’m over at Dymocks in the Mall.”

“I could always give you a lift over that way. I mean, if you’d like me to.”

“No, it’s all right. I could do with a day off, anyway. It’s been hell the last couple of weeks, what with school holidays and all that. Can I…” I trailed off, hoping I wouldn’t have to ask outright to use his phone again. 

He handed it back to me. 

“Thanks.”

I took the phone from him and quickly dialed my supervisor.

Just as I was finishing my phone call, and flipping the phone shut, I saw the roadside assistance truck coming up the street. I sighed in relief, handing the phone back to Taylor.

I waved the truck down then turned towards him.

“I can take it from here. Thanks for staying with me. I guess I’ll see you around.”

“It’s no trouble,” he replied, and I believed him.

But instead of going on his way, he started hunting through his pockets. 

“Look, if you need anything at all, give me a bell,” he said as he wrote down his name and and his mobile phone number on a piece of paper and handed it to me. “Even if your car’s broken down again and you need a lift.”

“Oh, thanks...you don’t have to,” I said lamely.

He smiled at me, and something told me he knew that, but wanted to anyway.

“I know what it’s like to not be able to rely on your car,” He said. “When I first moved down here, just after my daughter was born, all I had to drive was an old Falcon. It broke down so many times in such a short period of time you wouldn’t believe it, and I couldn’t afford to have it fixed until I was completely settled in. That wasn’t until she was about six or seven months old. And even then things were still messed up, so…”

He trailed off, realizing he’d revealed too much, or maybe he was thinking that I wouldn’t be interested in the details of his life. But I was.

“I understand, don’t worry,” I assured him, wanting for him to continue, but not sure why. I didn’t even know him, after all. “I’ve only just moved here myself. It’s hard going, I know.” I smiled at him.

“It does get better, though,” he said. “Once you get settled in and everything, you know?”

“Let’s hope it does.” I agreed. “I’ll see you later on.”

He gave me a little wave and walked away.

I cringed and wondered why I’d said I’d see him later on. I had no way of knowing if that were true. But a big part of me wanted it to be.

I shook my head, trying to get Taylor out of my head, and turned towards the driver of the truck.


	3. Chapter 3

I sat in my living room, nervously chewing on my lower lip, mobile phone in my hand.

I was really nervous to ask Taylor on a date. It’s not like we hadn’t hung out a lot...we _had_. A week after my car had broken down, and he’d given me his number, I’d texted him on a whim and asked if he wanted to have coffee. That was a month ago.

We’d had coffee every day on our lunch break since then. We both worked in the same mall, and it was easy for us to meet up everyday. Beyond coffee, I had been over to his apartment once - I’d made him chicken soup when he and Miki were sick, but we beyond that we hadn’t done anything.

I definitely considered Taylor a friend, and the progression of our friendship had been very natural...but I wanted more, and hoped Taylor did, too. 

It had become pretty clear Taylor wasn’t going to make the first move so I decided to take it upon myself to do so. It was risky, the last thing I wanted was to jeopardize our friendship, but I figured it was worth the risk if he felt the same. 

If I was being honest with myself, I had to admit I was quickly falling for Taylor. He was like no one I had ever met. He seemed to be such an old soul. I got the feeling he’d been through a lot. He’d shared some with me regarding his past - which was troubled at best - but I hadn’t pushed for more information. I knew he’d share more with me when he was ready. He was so kind, and patient, and well, there was no denying he was easy on the eyes.

I realized that since I’d met Taylor I had barely thought about my ex-boyfriend Ryan. That, to me, was a sign.

I had developed a big crush on Taylor, and I wanted to take it to the next level. But I didn’t want to rush it. There was something about Taylor that told me he bad been through a lot, and wasn’t the type to rush into something with someone. I couldn’t even tell if he liked me or not beyond a friend. I hoped he did. 

I had decided I needed to take the initiative: I was going to ask him on an official “date.” I had planned to ask him to go roller-skating, an activity I figured was low-pressure, and his daughter Miki could join in on. 

I had realized early on that if I was going to date Taylor, that Miki was part of the package. And honestly, I loved her. She was an adorable little girl. 

I took a deep breath and dailed Taylor’s familiar number before I had the chance to chicken out. 

He answered after one ring.

“Hey, it’s Audrey.”

Taylor’s familiar voice came through the receiver. I felt my heart jumped a bit, like it did every time I talked to him. 

“Oh, hey Audrey. What’s up?”

I took a deep, calming breath before continuing.

“I was wondering if you were free tomorrow night. There’s a new indoor skating rink that opened up down in Oak Flats about a month ago, and I’m thinking of heading down to go for a skate.” 

I said it so casually I almost believed that’s how I felt about it. But there was no denying that how I felt about Taylor was far from casual.

He didn’t answer right away, and I held my breath in fear, second-guessing my decision to ask him out. Maybe he didn’t see me that way.

“You want me to come roller skating with you?”

“Well, you and Miki, but that’s the general idea, yeah.”

“Audrey Carmichael, are you asking me out on a date?” Taylor asked.

His tone was playful, and I immediately let out the breath I had been holding. 

I paused. “I suppose I am,” I admitted.

“So when and where do you want Miki and I to meet up with you?”

I smiled, feeling giddy. We discussed logistics, and I hung up the mobile feeling on top of the world, grinning from ear to ear. I couldn’t resist doing a little happy dance. 

Taylor was going on a date with _me_. 

I quickly picked up my mobile again and dailed Marie. 

She answered. 

“Hey girl.” 

“Guess what?” I said excitedly.

“What?”

“I asked Taylor on a date and he said yes!”

Marie squealed. 

“Yes! I am so happy for you. What are you two going to do?”

“Go roller skating.” I replied.

“Oh, fun! When?”

“Tomorrow night.” 

“What are you going to wear?”


	4. Chapter 4

I stood out in front of the ice skating rink and looked around for Taylor’s car. He had texted me a few minutes earlier to tell me he was on the way. I had arrived at the skating rink early, and I’m glad I had. If I’d arrived any later I don’t think I’d been able to find a parking spot. Though the rink hadn’t even opened for the evening yet, the skating rink and surrounding parking lot was bustling with families toting roller skates, excited and ready to try out the new rink. 

I scanned the parking lot, looking for a sign of Taylor.

I waited patiently, but couldn’t deny I was excited and nervous to see Taylor. Things had changed. We weren’t just having coffee as we usually did - we were having our first date. 

I didn’t have to wait long; soon I spotted him across the parking lot, standing beside his car locking the door, his daughter Miki beside him.

“Over here, Taylor!” I yelled, waving my hand and smiling. 

Taylor looked up at the sound my voice and spotted me. He smiled and waved back. He then, after looking both ways carefully, crossed the busy parking lot, Miki trailing behind him, and what appeared to be his and Miki’s roller skates hanging from his other hand.

“Hey Audrey,” Taylor said as he approached me.

“Good to see you could both make it,” I said, unable to contain a grin. “And I’m glad to see that you’re feeling better, Miki.” I added, looking down at the little girl.

We walked into the skating rink and after paying our entry fees, were soon inside. 

“Shall we?” I asked, motioning to the rink, not wanting to waste anytime. I could see the rink already filling up, and I wanted to scope out a good spot.

Miki smiled a toothy smile.

“I can’t wait!” she said excitedly, practically dragging Taylor down the ramp into the rink itself. 

I laughed, following behind.

The three of us sat down on a bench along the side of the rink, across from the DJ’s booth. I put my purse and jacket down to stake our claim.

“Audrey, can you keep an eye on Miki for me for a few minutes?” Taylor asked me. He set down his skates under the bench. “I need to use the restroom.”

“Yeah, of course I can,” I replied. “I’ll help her put her skates on.”

“Thanks, Audrey,”

I watched Taylor walk up the ramp for a moment, then turned my attention to Miki, who was sitting patiently on the bench, looking up at me with wide eyes.

“Aud-ree?”

“Yeah?”

“What does ‘disown’ mean?”

I raised an eyebrow at this. I wondered why Miki knew that word and who had used that word and in what context. I thought for a moment, trying to formulate an appropriate way to respond. I wished Taylor were here to answer, but he wasn’t. So I would just have to wing it.

“Well, it means that your mummy and your daddy don’t want to be your mummy and daddy anymore,” I replied. I turned towards her and started to unlace her sneakers. 

“Where did you hear that word?” I asked casually.

“Daddy said to Uncle Zac one day that my nan and my pop disowned him,” Miki replied, shrugging. 

I couldn’t believe what I had just heard. Poor Taylor, I thought. No wonder he never talks about his family.

“Why would they do that?” I asked, my interest piqued, even though I knew this probably wasn’t the most appropriate conversation to be having with Miki.

“I don’t know. But he doesn’t like them very much.” She paused, then added, “I don’t like them very much either.”

Having removed the shoe, I slipped Miki’s right foot into one of the skates and started lacing it up. “I can see why he wouldn’t like them very much,” I said. “I wouldn’t either if my parents did that to me.” I added.

That answer seemed to satisfy Miki and she nodded. 

As I finished putting on Miki’s skates, I thought about what Miki had told me. Had Taylor’s parents really disowned him? If so, why? I hoped Taylor would tell me.

“Daddy!” Miki said, smiling a toothy grin.

I looked up from lacing up my own skates to see Taylor headed back down the ramp towards us.

“Hey you.” I said, smiling up at him.

“Hey you back,” he smiled back, sitting down and taking out his skates.

“Daddy! I’m ready, hurry up!!” Miki announced impatiently, swinging her legs over the side of the bench. “I wanna skate!”

Taylor laughed, and ruffled Miki’s hair. “Give me a sec, kiddo. Gotta put on my skates.”

Miki pouted but stayed put. “Okay.” 

Once Taylor’s skates were on, the three of us headed out into the rink. I haven't skated in years, and it appeared Taylor hadn’t either. We spent the first fifteen minutes or so awkwardly clinging to the side of the rink as we practiced.

Miki, however, was a natural - soon she was deftly skating on her own and ahead of us. 

After a while, we decided to take a break for a snack.

We got our stuff, and walked up the ramp off the rink. I spotted a small table in the corner in the cafe, and made a beeline for it, Taylor and Miki following behind me. 

We all sat down heavily in the small booth, a bit awkwardly due to our skates. Miki sat in the middle between Taylor and I. 

“Well,” I said, “I don’t know about you, but all that skating has me starved.” I remarked, wasting no time grabbing the menu and looking it over eagerly. 

Taylor nodded in agreement. “Me too.” 

The cafe had a small selection of food; mostly American “diner” food; cheeseburgers, milkshakes, stuff like that. I usually tried to eat healthy and avoided food like that, but figured I could make an exception for today since it was such a special date. 

Eventually, we settled on a cheeseburger and shake for Taylor and I, and chicken nuggets and a soda for Miki. The waitress has been nice enough to bring Miki a paper placemat for coloring and some crayons. Soon, she was busy with her masterpiece, which gave Taylor and I some much-wanted time to chat. Ironically, though, we ended up talking about Miki. 

While we waited for our food to arrive, we chatted. 

“So,” I said, glancing over at the little girl, happily scribbling away, her little brow furrowed in concentration. 

“Miki’s a good skater, huh? Does she skate at school or something? I thought you said she’d never skated before.”

Taylor laughed, taking a sip of his water, and shrugged. “I know. I’m as confused as you are. I didn’t think she’d ever skated before. I guess she’s just a natural.” 

He sounded proud of his little girl, and I smiled.

“We may have another future Tonya Harding on our hands,” referring to the professional American figure skater.

“Wasn’t she a figure skater?”

Boy, details didn’t go past Taylor easily, I thought.

I shrugged, standing by my comparison, which I thought had been clever. “Figure skating. Rollerskating. Same thing.” 

Taylor frowned, remembering something. “Wasn’t she the one who attacked that other figure skater?” 

I rolled my eyes and shrugged playfully. “True. You got me. I guess we should hope she doesn’t turn out like that then,” I laughed.

Taylor glanced over at his daughter, and smiled at her with obvious affection. Miki looked up briefly and smiled a toothy smile, then went back to her coloring.  
“Really,” Taylor said quietly, looking back at me. “All I want for her is to have a good life, you know? For her to grow up and know that she can live her life in any way she wants. Whether or not she ends up being a doctor for a barista, I just want her to be happy and know she is loved. Always.” 

I smiled. “You’re a good dad,” I said simply, and I knew it was true, even though I still didn't know Taylor _that_ well, really.

“I hope so.” he said seriously. “I try."


	5. Chapter 5

I was exhausted after having spent the evening skating with Taylor and Miki, but wasn’t ready to go home yet. I hoped Taylor felt the same. I decided to take a chance.

After Taylor had strapped in a tired but happy Miki into her car seat, he shut the car door and turned to me, smiling.

“Well, that was fun, Audrey. Thanks for inviting us.” 

“I had fun too, Taylor!” I replied, giving him a warm hug. 

We stood there awkwardly, unsure what to say to commemorate the end of our date.

It was now or never, I thought.

“Do you, uh, want to come over to my place?” I said suddenly, my tone suggestive but I hoped, also playful.

“I can’t. I have Miki.” Taylor replied.

“Well, duh,” I said, laughing at myself. Dating someone with a kid would take some getting used to. “Sorry.” I muttered, embarrassed.

“Don’t be,” he said, looking at me and and smiling. He paused for a moment. “I have a better idea. Let’s go to my place? I can put her to bed and we can hang out. Maybe have a beer? I know I have a few in the icebox.” 

“That sounds great.” I replied, relieved and excited he was on the same page as I was.

“Excellent” he said, walking around the side of the car to the driver’s side. 

It may have been wishful thinking or my imagination, but it seemed like he had a spring in his step.

“Do you want to follow me in your car?” he asked, looking back at me as he keyed his car door open.

“Sounds good!” I replied.

I walked over to my car, butterflies in my stomach at the inevitable situation that was ahead of me; being alone with Taylor in his apartment. 

I waited for him to pull out of his spot and out of the parking lot, then followed him to his apartment. 

As we pulled up, I recognized the apartment complex Taylor and Miki lived in. It wasn’t far from mine. It was a small complex with a half-dozen units, a bit run down but had charm. A friend of mine lived here. As I pulled into an empty spot in the parking lot beside Taylor, I wondered if he knew her.

I got out of my car and walked over to Taylor’s. He got out and smiled, motioning towards Miki. He closed his door softly. 

“She’s out. All that skating must have tuckered her out.” 

I peered into the backseat and sure enough he was right: Miki was fast asleep in the back seat in her booster seat. I smiled. 

“That she is. You want some help getting her out of her seat and inside?” I offered.

“Sure,” Taylor replied. “That’d be great. We’ll get her in bed and then we can hang out.” 

I opened the passenger side door.

“Give me your keys.”

He did so.

“You get her out. I’ll open the gate and the door so you can carry her in.” 

Taylor nodded.

“Sounds like a plan.”

Taylor reached in and carefully unbuckled Miki, then lifted her into his arms. She barely stirred. 

I grabbed Miki’s skates and shut the car door as Taylor carried Miki up the walkway to the gate.

“Which key is it?” I whispered. It seemed like an unspoken agreement between us that were trying to prevent waking Miki. 

“Uh, the red one.” Taylor replied quietly. 

I located the key on his keychain and keyed us into the gate. Taylor carried Miki through and I followed, closing it softly behind us.

I followed him up a flight of stairs.

“This is me,” Taylor announced, turning towards me and tilting his head towards an apartment. 

After asking him again what key it was, I unlocked and opened the door.

“Make yourself at home. I’ll just put her down and be right back.” Taylor said, then disappeared into the other room.

I placed his keys on the side table, and Miki’s skates on the floor next to it, that sat near the front door, and closed the door behind me. 

As I waited, I wandered around, having a look around the place. Taylor’s apartment was sparsely but comfortably furnished. My eyes feel on a small framed photo sitting on a side table near the couch. I walked over to take a closer look. In the photo, Taylor stood next to another man, who looked like a younger version of Taylor. They were posing in front of what looked like a gothic cathedral and had their arms around each other and were smiling. The photo looked a couple years old. Taylor’s hair was much shorter than it was now. The resemblance was uncanny: I assumed the the other man was Taylor’s brother. He had the same bright smile, long blonde hair and handsome good looks. This interested me. Taylor had never mentioned to me he had a brother.

I looked around some more then settled down on the couch. I checked my phone out of habit. About 10 minutes later, Taylor came out, looking apologetic. 

“I”m sorry. It took me a while to get her out of her clothes and into bed. Then she woke up and wanted me to sing to her.”

“Oh yeah?” I said, smiling. “What did you sing to her?” 

Taylor seemed to hesitate before answering. 

“Oh, just a song I wrote a long time ago. She loves it. I don’t know why. It’s not very good.”

I don’t know what surprised me more: that Taylor sang to his daughter to help her sleep, or that he’d sang her a song he wrote himself.

“Let me go and get us some beers,” Taylor said, disappearing behind the partition that I assumed led to his kitchen.

“You write songs?” I practically screeched, following him into the kitchen. “How have you never told me that?”

I put my hands on my hips, and raised an eyebrow. 

“That’s kind of a big deal you know.”

Taylor stood on front of the icebox, surveying its contents. He glanced up at me and shrugged.

“I don't know. I guess it never came up. I mean, I don’t write songs anymore. Haven't for a long time. Not since Miki was a baby, honestly.” 

He handed me a beer and closed the icebox. 

I could sense he didn’t want to talk about it, but was too curious to let it go.

“Okay, fair enough. But that’s so cool! What kind of music was it?” I asked.

He shrugged again, and motioned for to follow him.

We walked back into the sitting room together and settled on the couch.

“I don’t know. I guess you’d call it “indie. You know...singer/songwriter stuff.” 

He opened a beer with a bottle opener that was sitting in a small dish on his coffee table, then handed it to me. He then opened his and held his beer up to mine.

“To us,” he said. “Cheers.”

I held mine up and our glasses clinked. We each took sips then put our beers down on the table.

“So,” Taylor said, settling back into the couch and looking at me intently. “What about you, though? Do you have any artistic hobbies? I feel like I know a lot about you, but there’s so much I don’t know, you know? We always end up talking about work or something.”

I took another sip of my beer and thought about my answer.

“Honestly, not really. I did used to paint a bit, but I was never really good.” 

“That’s cool,” Taylor nodded. “I wish I could paint.”

“No way,” I shook my head. “Writing songs is way cooler. That takes real skill.”

“And painting doesn’t?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. 

I rolled my eyes playfully. “I guess you’re right.” 

He laughed and we settled into a short, comfortable silence. We smiled at each-other. I could feel an energy between us. I hoped it wasn’t all in my head. After a moment, Taylor stood up.

“Do you mind if I put on a record? I got a new one yesterday. I haven’t had a chance to listen to it yet.”

“Sure,” I replied.

Taylor walked over to a console that sat against the wall. On top of it sat a rack of records. He thumbed through them and chose one. He laid it carefully in the turntable and lifted the needle unto the record. 

“That’s a cool console,” I remarked. “Is it vintage?”

“I think so,” Taylor said as he sat back down on the couch.”I got it for a steal at that little antique place down the street from the theatre. You know, that one that always has a bunch of random furniture outside, and is never open?”

I knew what store he was talking about. I went in there often, usually just to browse.

“I love that place,” I said sincerely. “I’ve never bought anything there, though.” 

The record Taylor had put on was jazzy and upbeat. I liked it.

“So”, I said, “Enough about that. Back to your music. When did you start writing songs? Why’d you stop?”

Taylor laughed, seemingly accepting that I wasn’t going to let this go.

“Since I was a teenager. I wanted to be a professional singer/songwriter. But then Miki was born and well, things got pretty complicated. I tried to keep it up, but it was hard so I stopped. I still play my guitar sometimes, but it’s hard to find the time to practice these days. I still dream of having a professional music career, but I don’t even know how I’d go about it now. But as you saw, I do enjoy singing at open mic sometimes.”

I nodded and thought about what Taylor had said. 

“Another beer?” he said, noticing mine was almost empty. 

“Yes, please.”

Taylor stood up and collected our empty bottles, and disappeared into the kitchen. 

When he returned, I was holding the picture of him and his brother in my hands. 

“Is this your brother?” I asked. 

He sat down beside me and took the picture as I handed it to him. Our fingers brushed lightly and I felt a shiver go up my spine.

“It is,” he said, looking at the picture. “His name is Zac. He’s two years younger than me. This was taken when we visited London a couple years back. We have an aunt there.” 

“That’s so cool,” I remarked, taking the photo back and placing it back on the side table. “I’d love to visit London. What was it like?”

He opened our beers and handed me mine. 

“It was awesome. Really cool architecture and so much culture. We had a great time.” 

Before I had a chance to think about it, I blurted out.

“I’d love to travel somewhere with you, Taylor. We’d have so much fun.”

He smiled at me. “Me too, Audrey. I always wish I could travel more. That’d be awesome.” 

Immediately, my cheeks flushed red. What a dumb thing to say, I thought. You barely knew this guy and you’re talking about traveling together? You’ll probably scare him off before you’ve even begun. 

Thankfully, if Taylor noticed I was embarrassed by what I had said, he didn’t say anything, which I was thankful for.

We sat in comfortable silence for a while, sipping our beers and listening to the record. 

After a while, the record stopped. 

“I’ll go flip it,” Taylor said, getting up and walking over to the console again.

Our date was going so well, and I didn’t want to make it awkward, but I had wanted to ask Taylor a question since I got here. I had to know how he felt. It kept nagging at me. It was now or never, I said to myself for the second time that evening. 

I took a deep breath and a deep drink of my beer for courage.

Taylor sat back down next to me.

“Can I ask you something?” I asked.

“Of course,” Taylor replied, leaning towards me and looking at me intently. “What’s up?”

“Do you like me?” I asked, then instantly regretted it because it sounded juvenile. 

“Of course I like you,” he said, a small smile playing on his perfect lips. 

I shook my head. “No, I mean, like more than a...friend.” I looked down, too embarrassed and afraid at being rejected to look him in the eyes.

Taylor paused for a moment before answering. 

“Yeah. I like you, Audrey. I haven’t said anything until now because I wasn’t sure I wouldn’t be laughed at.”

I looked up at him then, hopeful. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach.

Was it possible he felt the same? I felt like I’d hit the jackpot. I let out a small laugh of relief. 

“Well, I wasn’t about to laugh at you, because I like you as well.” 

I decided to take a chance and put my hand in his. He squeezed it back and smiled. 

“We’re something, aren’t we?”

Taylor smiled at this. “Oh, we’re something all right.”

Then he kissed me, and immediately I knew it. I felt it in my bones: he was the one I had been looking for.


End file.
